Chinese 'roughed up' at Manila airport

MANILA - The Chinese embassy in Manila demanded "justice" for a Chinese woman manhandled by a Philippine immigration agent in a video taken by an eyewitness.

The video, broadcast on Philippine TV station ABS-CBN News, shows a man dragging a Chinese woman across the floor for several metres at Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

The long-haired woman pushes the man away, then charges towards him aggressively and hits him with her shoe repeatedly - all the while screeching hysterically.

The male official is then heard saying "Damn it!" before slapping her face several times. He goes on to shove her into a room, as a female officer in uniform drags what looks like the woman's luggage away.

ABS-CBN News identified the woman as Ms Jiang Huixing, a frequent visitor to the Philippines, who was denied entry this time as she was found to have been working illegally at a Chinese school during her stay.

Sunday's ugly brawl apparently started after an immigration agent stepped in when Ms Jiang resisted her deportation order.

She has since returned to Beijing, the Global Times reported on Tuesday, but maintains that she went to Manila for a holiday, although she admits to having worked there in the past.

In a statement released on Tuesday, the Chinese embassy in Manila said it had lodged a complaint against the Philippine immigration agent, the South China Morning Post reported.

The agent has been suspended pending a disciplinary review, Philippine immigration chief Siegfried Mison told DZMM radio of the ABS-CBN network yesterday.

Mr Mison said the agent should have handcuffed the unruly woman instead of slapping her. But he also stressed that airport staff had earlier tried to calm her down to no avail.

This article was published on May 8 in The Straits Times.Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.